Heartbreak as CAS turns down Vinesh’s appeal
Vinesh Phogat's silver medal hopes at the Paris Olympics were dashed after CAS rejected her appeal against disqualification for being 100 grams overweight.
Vinesh Phogat’s hopes of a silver medal at the Paris Olympics were dashed on Wednesday after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected the wrestler’s appeal against her disqualification by the world wrestling body, UWW, for being 100 grams overweight in the second weigh-in ahead of her final bout against USA’s eventual gold medallist Sarah Hildebrandt in the 50kg category.
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president, PT Usha, in a statement said the petition was rejected. The verdict by the sole CAS arbitrator, Australia’s Dr Annabelle Bennett, was deferred a third time, and was to be announced on Friday.
Usha, in a statement, expressed “shock and disappointment” at the CAS decision.
“The operative part of the August 14 decision, which dismisses Vinesh’s application to be awarded a shared silver medal in women’s 50kg category at the Paris Olympic Games 2024 has significant implications for her in particular and the sporting community at large,” the statement by the IOA chief said.
India’s apex sports body has not ruled out exploring further legal options.
“The marginal discrepancy of a 100 grams and resultant consequences has profound impact, not only in terms of Vinesh’s career but also raises serious questions about ambiguous rules and their interpretation,” the statement said.
“The IOA firmly believes that the total disqualification of an athlete for such a weight infraction on the second of two days warrants a deeper examination. Our legal representatives had duly brought this out in their submissions before the Sole Arbitrator,” it added.
The saga highlights the “stringent and, arguably, inhumane regulations that fail to account for the physiological and psychological stresses athletes, particularly female athletes, undergo,” Usha’s statement said.
Vinesh stormed into the final of the women’s 50kg freestyle event with three convincing wins on the first day of competition — against Japanese world champion Yui Susaki, Ukraine’s Oksana Livach, and then against Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez.
Though she had weighed in below 50kg that morning, following the third bout, Indian officials said Vinesh was around 2.7kg above the prescribed weight. It is natural for wrestlers to gain some weight following their bouts due to heavy fluid intake for sustenance, but the rise in her case was higher than expectations. Having to make the second weigh-in the next morning (August 7), she frantically worked all night to shed the excess weight. Despite the effort, however, the three-time Olympian was still found 100 grams overweight during the weigh-in. She was disqualified; Cuban Lopez was promoted to the final, which she lost to win the silver medal.
Following the disqualification, French lawyers Joelle Monlouis, Estelle Ivanova, Habbine Estelle Kim and Charles Amson, who were working pro bono, helped Vinesh and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) in filing the application before CAS.
In addition, former solicitor general of India Harish Salve and senior counsel Vidushpat Singhania, who specialises in sports law, were roped in.
The verdict on Wednesday brings to a closure a saga that marks a heartbreak for Vinesh, who suffered a serious knee injury in a pre-medal bout at the 2016 Rio Olympics and was eliminated early at the 2021 Tokyo Games.
It has been a tumultuous two years off the mat, too, for Vinesh, the face of the sit-in protest that started in Delhi in January last year demanding action against then Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over allegations of sexual harassment. The Delhi Police filed an FIR after Vinesh, Rio Games bronze medallist Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia, the Tokyo bronze medallist, resumed their sit-in proteston April 23, 2023. The Delhi court’s verdict in the case is awaited.
Vinesh, whose normal weight is 55-56kg, was forced to drop down to 50kg ahead of the Paris Olympics as she rebuilt following the long break during the protest. She competed in the 50kg and 53kg divisions at the domestic trials for the Olympic qualifiers in March and qualified in the lower weight category.
A CAS statement on August 9 said: “The Applicant initially sought a decision from the CAS Ad hoc Division annulling the Challenged Decision (disqualification) and ordering another weigh-in before the final match as well as a declaration that she be declared eligible and qualified to participate in the final. However, she did not request urgent interim measures. The CAS Ad hoc Division procedure is fast, but it was not possible for a decision on the merits to be issued within an hour, bearing in mind that the Respondent UWW would have had to be heard first. The procedure is, however, ongoing and the Applicant has confirmed that she seeks the annulment of the Challenged Decision and that she requests to be awarded a (shared) silver medal. The matter has been referred to the Hon. Dr Annabelle Bennett AC SC (AUS), sitting as a Sole Arbitrator…”
A day after the disqualification, Vinesh announced her retirement from the sport, saying she doesn’t have the strength to continue, as sporting icons from across the world threw their weight behind the 29-year-old.